BRONX, N.Y. – The Bison faced Fordham on Saturday afternoon at Moglia Stadium and had a chance to score with less than two minutes remaining, but Bucknell’s efforts fell short and the Rams won 27-21. I got it.
The Bison took one timeout and began their final drive at their own 15-yard line at 1:50 of the timeout. They got as far as the Fordham 35, but a sack on the final play of the game ended things. This is the fifth time Fordham has waived Ralph Rucker, who once again filled the stat sheet with a 300-yard game. Rucker completed 32 of 48 attempts for 358 touchdowns and two touchdowns.
Defensively, it was freshman Gavin Willis who had an incredible performance with a game-high 15 tackles. The defense also stopped Fordham on three of its five fourth-down attempts and committed its only turnover of the game. They held an offense that ranks 13th in the FCS in scoring to less than 30 points and just 10 points through most of the first half.
Bucknell held a 3-0 lead early in the game, but trailed by 14 points in the third quarter. Leading 24-13 early in the fourth, Charlie Kleinbuescher blocked a Fordham punt, giving the ball to the Rams’ No. 16 offense. One play later, Rucker hit Damian Harris in the end zone and the two connected again for a two-point conversion. Reduce the deficit to 3. The Bison held the Rams to three points on their final four drives to give them a chance.
The Bison finished the game with 454 yards of offense and led in time of possession. They made him 8-of-16 on third-down attempts and his only attempt on fourth down, which came on the final drive of the game.